You formed in 2009, and a year and a half later, opened the Glade stage at Glastonbury Festival. How did that come about?
The Glade stage are in partnership with Solent University and they were looking for a couple of bands to open the stage on the Saturday. We received an email at the beginning of the summer from Solent asking if we would like to play - of course we jumped at the chance!
You played Butserfest alongside the likes of Young Guns, My Passion and The King Blues. How was that for you?
It was awesome, it has to go down in my favourite shows of all time. We played to a sweet crowd of our fans and we introduced the band to a bunch of new people and that was cool. The whole day is just rad to be a part of, if we don't play this year I'm going as a fan of the event.
The festival targets a younger audience, as well as being a drug/alcohol free event. How does the atmosphere differ/compare with the likes of Glastonbury and Beach Break Live (a festival sold as the ‘ultimate student experience’)?
The atmosphere differed at each show, but they were all sweet experiences. Butserfest is targeted to an audience we'd normally pull to our own headline shows so it's almost always going to be a sweet set. Glastonbury and Beach Break are multi-genre and multi-cultural events so the audience has an enormous variation. That's cool, because you get to reach audiences you wouldn't always get the chance to. With the reference to Butserfest being alcohol/drug free and the other two festivals selling alcohol... I didn't see that affecting the atmosphere as everyone is just at the festivals to have a good time.
You seem to have specifically stuck to touring the lower half of the UK. Any particular reason?
There are a number of reasons but they all revolve around to how far our tour funding can go, at the present time. We are planning a tour to concentrate on places up north for towards the end of the year, so that's something we're excited for.
That would be good to see you up north...
Haha, Yeah! We are desperate to get up there and we are working on it.
In a couple of weeks, you’re heading to the recording studio. What can we expect from the finished piece?
I'm writing this in the studio, and what I'm hearing is so awesome. We have spent a lot of time on the songs for this record and we are making them sound so much bigger than our last EP. I'm very excited to get these out.
When will you be releasing it?
It will be a summer release. When we have an official release date we'll have it over at http://www.facebook.com/thecitycalls
Your 5 track E.P. “Dirty Calls” can be found on Spotify. What was the process for getting it on there?
Our label got our EP onto Spotify and the same for other digital distribution sites.
Do you think Spotify and free music apps. help or hinder bands just starting out?
Well, every little helps. If a band can get themselves onto those sites and apps then it's going to branch their music out to more people.
You describe yourselves as ‘pop-punk’, a genre that seems to have taken a back seat in recent years, whilst more hardcore bands have hit the mainstream. Do you think this has affected your progress at all?
Not at all, Pop Punk is stronger than ever with bands like You Me At Six flagging the UK and for the US it's All Time Low and Paramore. If anything I feel it's harder to break through with these bands doing so well. That's why with this next record we are pushing the boat out further with some of the songs and really defining our sound more.
Who would you say your biggest influences are?
We are all influenced by different bands so I can vouch for the other guys but I get influenced by loads of bands to be honest haha. I try to vary what I listen to and subconsciously I think you can pick up some really nice ways of creating melody. And that's cool.
Who would be your ideal band to support on tour?
We'd certainly fit in with the Paramore and You Me At Six crowd but it's really a case of who we all individually like that would make it ideal!
Will we be seeing you at any festivals this year?
Nothing has been confirmed but we are wanting to play a few this year. Once again, anything that does get announced will be right over at our Facebook page.
